Afterwards, the ladies mingled and asked Laurie questions while waiting for their makeovers and photos. Together, the attendees sympathized with one another on how difficult dating in New York can be.

“There are so many options for guys here,” Alexis pointed out. “It’s like a buffet for them.” Another woman, Nancy simply added, “There’s more good-looking women.”

If you looked around the room that night it was easy to see the truth in this statement. Although the crowd was diverse in terms of race, body shapes and fashion styles, everyone shared one common characteristic — they were all universally attractive.

While unspoken rivalry can exist between single city gals, Urban Girl Squad aims to shift the focus away from these unproductive attitudes. This awesome organization creates events specifically to encourage fun, meaningful interactions amongst young professional women, which is exactly what we saw last Thursday. Without the pressure of competition, everyone was comfortable enough to share the best of their worst dating stories.

When it came to weird pickup lines, Kelsey’s story took the cake. “Once, a guy just came up to me and said, ‘You’re like a mermaid,’” she laughed. “That was all he said.” And only in New York, could a date end as awkwardly as Justine’s did: “When we left on the Path train, we got off at different stops … and he gave me a pound.”

But the biggest doozy was a story told by a woman who asked to remain anonymous — and after you read this, you’ll understand why. Towards the end of her date with a rude lawyer who broke every cardinal rule of dating etiquette (from ordering her food without asking about allergies to thoughtlessly insulting her), Miss Anon bought a round of cocktails to wrap up her evening.

“I went to the bathroom, and he ordered himself another drink on my tab! And then when I came back he had the nerve to ask me if I wanted a sip of his drink. So then he spends another hour talking about himself, and I’m just sitting there with the ice in my glass clinking around. Finally he finishes and I walk him to the subway. I’m walking a little bit in front of him when he grabs my arm from behind, spins me around, and plants one on me. It gets worse,” she said. “He kissed like a goldfish! I’ve never been kissed like that before.”

While everyone can relate to a bad dating story, it’s amazing when women can come and commiserate together — and hopefully, stay connected while chatting about amazing dating stories, too!

eFlirt Expert had an amazing time being a part of the Modern Dating event and we know that you’ll have an equally great time at any one of Urban Girl Squad’s unique meet-ups. Check out what’s happening on their website, or follow them on Twitter!